EU and US take stock of trade and technology cooperation

The European Union and the United States held the fifth meeting of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) in Washington, D.C. The meeting allowed ministers to take stock of the progress of the TTC’s work and to provide a political steer on key priorities for the next TTC Ministerial meeting, which will take place in Belgium in the spring.

The TTC is the main forum for close cooperation on transatlantic trade and technology issues. It was co-chaired by European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, and US Trade Representative Katherine Tai, joined by European Commissioner Thierry Breton.

Participants showed a strong, shared desire to continue to increase bilateral trade and investment, cooperate on economic security and emerging technologies, and advance joint interests in the digital environment. In the margins of this TTC meeting, both sides agreed to continue to explore ways to facilitate trade in goods and technologies that are vital for the green transition, including by strengthening the cooperation on conformity assessment. The EU and the US have also committed to making tangible progress on digital trade tools to reduce the red tape for companies across the Atlantic and to strengthen our approaches to investment screening, export controls, outbound investment, and dual-use innovation.

Following their commitment at the last TTC Ministerial, the EU and the US welcomed the International Guiding Principles on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the voluntary Code of Conduct for AI developers adopted in the G7 and agreed to continue cooperating on international AI governance. Both parties also welcomed the industry roadmap on 6G which sets out guiding principles and next steps to develop this critical technology. They also took stock of progress in supporting secure connectivity around the globe, notably for 5G networks and undersea cables.

The EU and the US are also intensifying their coordination on the availability of critical raw materials crucial for semiconductor production, having activated the joint TTC early warning mechanism for semiconductor supply chain disruptions, following China’s announced controls on gallium and germanium.

They continued to exchange information on public support for the investments taking place under the respective EU and US Chips Acts. A roundtable on the semiconductor supply chain took place in the margins of the TTC, focusing on developments and potential cooperation in the legacy semiconductor supply chains. Finally, the EU and the US discussed a report mapping EU and US approaches to digital identity, currently open for comments.

At a stakeholder meeting on Crafting the Transatlantic Green Marketplace, which takes place on 31 January, stakeholders will present their views and proposals on how to make transatlantic supply chains stronger, more sustainable, and more resilient. A series of workshops will take place to boost the transatlantic green marketplace and to promote good quality jobs for the green transition, as well as workshops on the solar supply chain, permanent magnets, and investment screening.

Both sides agreed that the next TTC Ministerial meeting will take place in spring in Belgium, hosted by the Belgian Presidency of the Council.